Ryan and John took the Champion 2500-Watt Ultralight on a solo car-camping trip in the Cascades and on dockboard repairs, and it weighs about 39 lb dry. It scores 82 out of 100, ranks #6 in our best small generators guide as our best portable small generator, and #6 in our best inverter generators guide.
Best Portable Small Generator
Champion 2500-Watt Ultralight Inverter Generator
- Output: 1,850 W running, 2,500 W surge
- Our noise reading: about 53 dBA, quarter load
- Weight: about 39 lb dry
- Our runtime: about 11.5 hr at a quarter load, 1.1 gal
Bottom Line : A light 2,500 W inverter with a long runtime, though it's raspier than the Honda and struggles with heavy motor surges.
Pros
- About 39 lb dry
- 2,500 W starting surge
- About 11.5 hours at a quarter load
- Shared the load evenly in parallel
Cons
- Raspier than the Honda, and louder under medium and heavy loads
- Struggles with heavy motor surges; owners report it trips an RV air conditioner
- Gas only
- Build scores below the Honda
On the Trail and the Dock
Weight is the headline. Ryan and John put it at about 39 lb dry, about 8 lb lighter than the Honda EU2200i's 47.4 lb. Owners call it the one-handed wonder, because you can carry it down a steep trail in one hand with a cooler in the other.
They used it in two places: solo car camping in the Cascades and dockboard repairs. It ran a 12V marine battery charger, a 7-1/4 inch circular saw in short bursts, a portable espresso machine and a heated blanket.
It reads about 53 dBA at a quarter load on a UT353 meter at 23 feet. Ryan and John describe the pitch as slightly rasper than the Honda's, but easy to tune out. Side by side on a late-summer backcountry trip, the Honda was clearly quieter under medium and heavy loads and vibrated far less.
A 1.1-gallon tank ran about 11.5 hours at a quarter load, against the Honda's 8.5 hours on 0.95 gallon.
A CPAP, a drone battery charging hub and an iPad ran off it together with no voltage dips. Champion's ParaLink kit paired it with a Champion dual fuel unit, and the two shared the load evenly.
Where It Asks Something of You
It struggles with heavy motor starts. Ryan and John list heavy motor starts as its worst trait, and owners on r/GoRVing report that a 13,500 BTU RV air conditioner without a soft-start kit trips the overload. We have no air conditioner run on it, so budget for a soft starter if one is on your list.
It's louder than the Honda once the load climbs. The side-by-side showed the gap widening under medium and heavy loads, and the pitch is rasper than the Honda's even at a quarter load.
The build scores below the Honda's and the Yamaha's in our small generators guide. It has a 79cc engine and it's built light for portability.
It runs on gas only. If you want propane, the WEN 3600 Dual Fuel is our dual fuel pick now that the Champion 2500 Dual Fuel is gone.
Spec Sheet vs Our Test
1,850 W running, 2,500 W surge. The surge rating is higher than the Honda's 2,200 W. Ryan and John ran a 7-1/4 inch circular saw in short bursts, a portable espresso machine and a heated blanket on it and we have no draw log, so how close that came to 1,850 W is unknown. The surge number also doesn't tell you about heavy motor starts, which Ryan and John list as its worst trait.
53 dBA at 23 feet. Champion rates it at 53 dBA from 23 feet, and the UT353 read about 53 dBA at a quarter load. At that load it's a conversation-level hum. Under medium and heavy loads the Honda was clearly quieter, and we have no Champion dBA figure there.
Up to 11.5 hours at a quarter load. Champion quotes up to 11.5 hours, and Ryan and John logged about 11.5 hours on 1.1 gallons at a quarter load. That's a full night of a heated blanket and a charger on one tank.
About 39 lb. Champion lists 39.7 lb, and Ryan and John put it at 39 lb dry. That's about 8 lb under the Honda EU2200i at 47.4 lb, which matters on a trail or a dock, and it's the reason it earns the best portable award.
CO Shield. Champion fits an automatic carbon monoxide shutoff and calls it CO Shield. We have no test of it. Run the generator in the open with the exhaust pointing away from the tent and the truck, and let the shutoff be the second line of defense.
Economy mode. Champion says economy mode lowers noise and fuel use at light load. We have no on-and-off comparison, so the saving is Champion's claim. If you camp near others, it's the setting to leave on.
ParaLink parallel kit. Champion sells a kit to link two units. Ryan and John paired the Ultralight with a Champion dual fuel unit, and the two shared the load evenly. That's the useful result: a light unit can join a bigger one when the load grows.
Should You Buy the Champion 2500 Ultralight?
Buy the Champion 2500 Ultralight if weight and watts for the money come first. It's about 39 lb, it has a 2,500 W surge rating and it runs most of a night at a quarter load. For solo camping or dock work where you carry it yourself, it's the easy carry.
The Champion isn't the one if you want the quietest running or the longest life. The Honda EU2200i is clearly quieter under load, and Honda EU2200i vs Champion 2500 Ultralight shows the gap. If an RV air conditioner is on your list, the Yamaha EF2400iSHC starts a 13,500 BTU unit with no soft starter, and for propane the WEN 3600 Dual Fuel is our pick.
Compare With
- Honda EU2200i: quieter and longer lived.
- Yamaha EF2200iS: about 16 lb heavier, with a 30 amp RV plug built in.
- Honda EU2200i vs Champion 2500 Ultralight: tested side by side.
- WEN 56225i: our best small generator for the money.
- Westinghouse iGen2550: dual fuel with a 30 amp RV outlet.
- WEN 3600 Dual Fuel: for propane.
- Best inverter generators: all ten ranked.
- Best small generators: the full small generators list.
For every type of generator, start at our best generators guide.
Editor's Note, 31 October 2026: Added Ryan and John's Cascades and dockboard notes: about 39 lb dry, about 53 dBA at a quarter load on a UNI-T UT353 sound meter at 23 feet, about 11.5 hours on 1.1 gallons, and the parallel test. The rank now reads #6 in our small generators guide, and the inverter generators guide rank is corrected to #6, where this page said #2. The score of 82 and the buy button are unchanged.
Editor's Note, 17 October 2026: The Champion 2500-Watt Dual Fuel is no longer available, so the dual fuel alternative listed near the end now points to the WEN 3600 Dual Fuel, our current pick in that slot. The rest of this review is unchanged.
Editor's Note, 29 September 2026: We replaced the test-team quote here with what owners report, because it did not come from our own testing.
Our Testers
This review was tested by our lead tester, Ryan Williams, and John Palmer, and edited by Sean Williams.
- Sean Williams, Editor-in-Chief. Sean built the team of researchers and testers behind our reviews and edits every guide. His rule: we say what we actually found.
- Ryan Williams, Lead Tester. Ryan leads our field tests and our generator and solar testing.
- John Palmer, Tester. John tests our generators alongside Ryan; his own Honda EU2000i is on year 8.
